


And Something More

by sunshineflying



Series: tshaw and evie [1]
Category: BBC Radio 1 RPF, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-24
Updated: 2015-08-24
Packaged: 2018-04-17 00:57:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4646382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunshineflying/pseuds/sunshineflying
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a world after One Direction, everyone's sort of gone their own way. Louis ends up reconnecting with Nick while he's judging for the X-Factor, and a lucky incident with a heater has Nick crashing at Louis's flat for the night. Complete with single father Louis, chef Nick, and some really messy mash.</p>
            </blockquote>





	And Something More

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much to Jen for agreeing to beta and Brit-pick this for me so last minute! You're a doll!
> 
> This is my first Tomlinshaw fic, and I'm thinking about continuing the verse - I'd love to hear your feedback. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!

Louis wouldn’t exactly call Nick Grimshaw a _friend_. They’re acquaintances at best, and Nick has a way of getting under his skin even when he’s not in the mood for jokes.

He’s honestly the only reason Louis hesitated before taking his gig on the X-Factor.

That, and leaving little Evie behind with her mum for months was going to be difficult too. But she’s young, like Briana had pointed out. What’s a few months, really?

So he puts up with Nick’s teasing, the mockery he saves up just for set, and Louis sort of likes the banter. He likes to tease, to call Nick an old man. He likes to see the way Nick tries to act ten years younger than he actually is while he’s around Louis. It’s almost like they’re flirting, Louis realized one night. But they’re not. Because that’s a thing they don’t do. It’s a thing they can’t do. Right? Nick keeps it up anyway, both on camera and off, and Louis is as sharp-tongued and quick-witted as ever when he fires come backs at Nick.

Secretly Louis likes knowing Nick focuses so much energy on him and only him.

But then X-Factor wraps and it’s sort of like Nick never happened to Louis. Or rather, that’s what Louis would like to say. Meanwhile, Nick’s on his mind whenever Evie isn’t. He’s got custody of Evie now while Briana gets into the big award season out in L.A. They both know that parenting across continents isn’t going to work out, not in the long run, but they’ve got something that works for now and it’ll have to do.

Besides, Briana seems to like her busy life out in L.A., though it’s not for a lack of love toward Evie. She’d said many a time that she thinks Evie’s better off with Louis out in London. Louis denied it at first, he’s known life without a parent, but he also knows that it's better in the long run if Briana doesn’t try to force some instinct that’s not there. She retains her time with Evie, though, and Louis fears it’ll get ugly when he wants to work it out properly.

It’s still a touchy subject and nobody ever brings it up with Louis.

Not even Nick, and he likes to bring up _everything_.

And speaking of Nick, Louis isn’t quite sure why he’s ringing him on a boring Tuesday evening in February. They’ve wrapped on the show and Nick’s back to his radio thing, and he’s got his own life, filled with plenty of friends out in the heart of things in London.

But regardless of all of that, his phone still lights up, the caller ID showing Nick’s ugly mug with his name on top of it.

Evie’s quietly watching Peppa Pig on the sofa, curled up all drowsy-like with her blanket and her dummy, so Louis answers where he stands in the kitchen.

“Miss me already?”

He can’t help but smirk. Nick doesn’t sound so amused.

“Let me in?”

Louis snorts because that’s the oddest fucking request he’s ever heard, especially in place of a normal greeting. “What are you on about?” he asks, wandering toward the windows. One glance out gives him the view of Nick Grimshaw standing on the pavement outside his flat, bundled up in an expensive looking pea coat, a plain black knit hat, and a fluffy black and white scarf. He looks absolutely frozen. “Bit creepy that, you standing outside my door.”

Nick glances up to see Louis peeking out the window. His cheeks are pink from cold and his nose looks wet, like he’s sniffling, and Louis hears how clogged up Nick’s gotten when he replies, “The heats gone in my flat and nobody else is answering.”

“So you just assumed I’d be home?” Louis asks. He still hasn’t moved from the window, and his eyes haven’t left Nick.

Nick looks annoyed as he says, “I knew you had Evie. Figured you’d be home.”

“What if I was visiting me mum?” challenges Louis.

“Can’t we do this up in your flat? I don’t think I’ve been in temperatures above four degrees all day.”

And Nick does look positively frozen, so Louis sighs and says, “Alright. I suppose you could come warm up a bit. But this doesn’t make us _friends_ , Grimmy.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Nick laughs.

Louis buzzes him in and Evie stirs on the couch, suddenly aware of the fact that they’re going to have visitors after dinner. They never have visitors after dinner. “Dada?” she asks.

She’s still probably a bit too young to be on the couch by herself, but when she’s sleepy Louis lets her get away with it. She’s squirmy now, so he rushes over to pick her up, hopefully before the doorbell rings so he doesn’t leave Nick waiting.

But it doesn’t matter if he leaves Nick waiting, because that actually sounds quite fun. Except the poor lad did look rather cold…

Louis snaps out of his thoughts and the sudden wave of empathy for this guy when Evie smacks him gently on the face, right at his jaw. “Hi love,” he coos. “Daddy’s just got a friend visiting. It’s okay.”

But she’s smiling, so she doesn’t need reassurance. He just wanted to say it, wanted to admit to someone who _wasn’t_ Nick that he considers him a friend, because Nick’s head would inflate so greatly that Louis thinks he’d have trouble getting through the door of the flat. 

 

When there’s a knock on the door, Evie squeals, and Louis can’t help but smile at her as he wraps her in her blanket and then walks to the door. “Well look who it is,” Louis laughs as he lets Nick in. “Are you sure you haven’t forgotten to pay for the heat? That’s a thing you have to do, Grimmy. Even if you’re on the telly.”

“Oh shut it,” Nick rolls his eyes. “I’ve paid the bill, they’re all just a bunch of wankers.”

“Ankers!” Evie repeats, the word garbled by her dummy.

“No,” Louis says sternly, turning her head to his with his finger. “We don’t say that word here. Grimmy’s been bad. He owes us a quid!”

Louis reaches toward the counter for a jar that’s already full of coins – Nick laughs and asks, “All your mess-ups in here, then?”

“Not just mine. Niall’s awful with the words as well,” Louis says. “At least half are his.”

Nick rummages in his pocket for a quid and only comes out with a five quid note. “This’ll have to do. What’s this money for, anyway?” he asks.

Louis eyes the note warily because he definitely heard coins in Nick’s pocket, but doesn’t press it. He’s honestly too tired to bother. Taking care of Evie on his own is harder than when he’d helped his mum with his siblings. They were a team. Now he’s alone.

He shrugs. “Haven’t decided yet. For Evie to do something with, I guess,” he says. “She’s a bit too young to understand the concept, but as you can tell, she likes to repeat only the stuff that’ll get her in trouble.”

“I wonder where she learned that?” Nick teases.

Louis adjusts her on his hip; she’s getting bigger now, at nearly eighteen months, and she’s squirmier too. She’s constantly wanting down, to explore and to play, and Louis sometimes struggles to keep up. He dreads considering what that means – that he’s _old_ like he mocks Nick for being.

“She really is quite cute,” Nick offers.

“The cutest,” Louis says back, firmly.

“Of course.”

It’s awkward then, because Nick’s sort of invited himself in and Louis doesn’t want to be rude but they have a routine to stick to. He was never one to be all that fond of routine, but Evie thrives on it – she definitely gets _that_ from Briana – and he wants to try to keep some level of consistency in her life between continents.

“Well, Evie and I were just going to settle in for a film and then it’s her bedtime, so…” Louis begins. “Or have you invited yourself into that, as well?”

There’s a bite to it that Nick’s unsure about – a dig at him, maybe – but he knows Louis is just trying to keep up the banter. Usually it works, but it’s like he’s different around his daughter. It’s almost as though he’s hoping to avoid showing her the side of him that always bickers with Nick, so she doesn’t pick up the habit.

“I don’t know what else I’d do,” Nick quips. “But why don’t I ask the little lady, see what she thinks?”

Louis has to fight the urge to twist his body, to pull Evie away from Nick, because his two worlds are colliding and he’s not all that sure he’s ready for it.

But then Nick’s leaning in to be eye level with Evie and he’s smiling so warmly, and she’s not shying away. Usually she does, when it’s someone unfamiliar.

“Hello love,” Nick says. “Could I kip here and watch a film with you and daddy?”

And _god_ something twists in Louis’s gut and he doesn’t know how to handle it, what this odd feeling is that he gets when he hears Nick call him daddy. It’s not in a dirty way, but it’s so familial, rolls off his tongue so well it’s startling.

“Da?” Evie asks, and she turns to look curiously at Louis.

“What do you think, sweetheart?” Louis asks. He wants so badly to make a jab at Nick, but manages to say nothing but a respectful, “Can Nick watch a film with us tonight?”

Evie looks back at Nick and seems to contemplate it for a moment.

Nick shouldn’t be nervous, waiting on the decision of a toddler, because he knows it’s ridiculous and Louis could change her mind in an instant, if he wanted. 

She has the same eyes as Louis, those sparkling, captivating blue eyes, and Nick knows he’s going to give her whatever she wants and do whatever she says. She really is adorable, with her white-blonde hair in a small ponytail atop her head and her father’s same fierce eyes.

He’d probably listen and leave in an instant if she told him to, she’s got that same sort of power as Louis. The power Nick won’t admit he has, but still. Little details.

“Okay!” Evie smiles.

Nick grins despite the fact that he’d told himself he’d keep a straight face – he can’t let a toddler’s decisions affect him so much - but he’s relieved because his flat’s cold and his friends are out and he’s exhausted. Louis really was the best option, all around.

They let Evie choose the movie of course, and after they’re all settled in with Frozen, which Louis begrudgingly puts in (“She’s watched it four times this week!” he whines.), everything seems rather normal.

Except Nick is buzzing in his skin, trying to figure out when on earth he’d decided that staying in with Louis and his toddler on one of his free nights was better than going out and meeting up with his friends at a bar. Louis seems just as lost in his own head, eyes focused on the telly but not really _there_ , so Nick doesn’t feel so bad for tuning out.

Halfway through the film, Evie slumps, already asleep. She’s got her little head rested on Nick’s stomach, and her mouth is dropped open with a little string of drool landing on the sleeve of Nick’s jumper. Louis notices almost right away and his stomach does a twist as he hears a little voice in his head saying it looks _right_ , seeing them like that.

He looks away quickly when he sees Nick’s caught him staring, and Louis is in a foul mood the rest of the night. He doesn’t like the way his brain tells him that Nick looks good holding his sleeping daughter against his side. He doesn’t like the way Evie seems to enjoy Nick’s company so much.

He doesn’t like the way those thoughts keep popping up in his head, reminding him that none of that is very bad, after all.

In fact, he quite likes it. At least because it means Nick can babysit; Louis hasn’t pulled in ages because he’s always got Evie with him when he’s got the free workload to spend a night out.

When the ending credits roll, Louis stands from the sofa and turns to pick up Evie. She’s comfortably nestled into the space between Nick’s arm and torso, curled up with her blanket and her dummy on his lap, forgotten as she’s gotten into deeper sleep, the kind that gets her to sleep with her mouth open. “Time for bed, love,” he whispers to her, and gently picks her up.

She whimpers a little, grapples around for her blanket, and quiets a little when she feels the familiar fleece in her hands. She’s still got her face screwed up in unhappiness, and Nick reaches out to put her dummy back in her mouth. A few sucks later she’s already dozing off again.

Louis tries to ignore how badly such a simple action can make him want to snog Nick’s face off.

Once he lays Evie down in her cot, he wanders back out into the living area to see Nick taking out the Frozen DVD and putting the case back on the shelf. “You didn’t have to clean up after us,” Louis quips, but it falls short.

Nick stops, a million thoughts flying through his head, before he comments, “It’s the least I could do. I intruded upon your family time.”

Louis’s face screws up in confusion. “Family time?”

“You only see her so often, right? And then she goes back with what’s-her-name?”

With a shrug, Louis says, “It’s up in the air. For now, I have her until this summer. We’re gonna work it out proper, then. Think I might get her even more.” He pauses. “Why does it matter?”

Nick looks up at Louis and he’s not really sure why it matters, why he thought so suddenly that he was intruding on a private thing. It’s none of his business, after all. Besides, Louis would have easily turned him away if it was a bad time. He’s never been afraid to be brutally honest with him before, anyway.

But he’s grown up a lot since Evie arrived. Maybe Louis has changed.

“Shall I kip on the couch, then?” he asks, changing the subject.

Louis sighs. He’s cleaning up random toys, putting them back in a basket where they’ll undoubtedly be plucked from the very next day. “You could do,” Louis says. “You’re a bit tall for it though.”

Nick laughs, wholehearted and amused. “I didn’t think that would matter to you.”

Louis joins in with laughter of his own, the thought of Nick trying to sleep on his admittedly small sofa is actually quite hilarious. “Fair point. I suppose I could take pity on you just this once,” Louis hedges. “Since you’ve broken your heat, and all. Dunno how you’d even _do_ something like that, but maybe I’ll trust you.”

“What, afraid I’ll grab a feel in bed?” Nick jokes.

Louis’s eyes darken and he suddenly grows serious. “You think I’d do that?” he snaps. Nick can clearly see that he’s upset him. “I’m not afraid of… you’re not –“

Nick’s face falls. “Louis…”

“I’m not scared to sleep in the same bed as a gay man,” Louis says firmly, like he’s got something to prove. “Why would you think that I am?”

“I don’t, I’m sorry. It was a stupid joke,” Nick says back. “I meant it more like… I’m _me personally_. Not the _I have a dick_ sort of a thing.”

Louis studies Nick’s face through the dim lighting of the room, night fully settled on the flat now. Part of him wants to believe Nick, but the other part of him is still on the defense. Louis knows he’s not afraid – he knows a hell of a lot more than the rest of the world – but he doesn’t dare say it to Nick. They’re always mocking each other and Louis isn’t so sure this is something he wants to be joked about.

“Right,” Louis sighs. “Well… we should sleep. The bed’s plenty large.”

He leads Nick into his room and shows him where the dresser is so he can find his own pajamas. Louis brushes his teeth, gives his face a good wash, and climbs into bed in nothing but a pair of trackies.

He takes the right side, which Nick tries not to think too much about.

See, Nick… Nick always takes the left.

Even in Louis’s impressively large bed, he can feel the weight of him lying there, curled up in a ball faced away from him. Nick can feel his warmth through the blankets, his cold toes lingering dangerously close to his bare legs… it’s a lot to take in.

It takes Nick hours of staring at the ceiling and trying to ignore the impure thoughts spurred on by sharing a bed with Louis fucking Tomlinson before he actually falls asleep.

When he manages, it’s the best sleep he ever gets.

\---

Nick’s heating gets fixed the next day so he’s got no excuse to hang out at Louis’s, though he wishes he did. Suddenly there’s nothing he wants more than to be over there with Louis and Evie, bumming around watching Disney movies and curling up under blankets.

He’d never expected that a random kip with a co-worker could have made him so… domesticated.

Nick cringes at the thought, tells himself that there’s no way that one evening with Louis Tomlinson could change him so much, but there’s something about it. The marked improvement in Louis’s temperament and nature around children, the way he’s more placid and agreeable, sort of has Nick intrigued.

He likes other Louis, non-parent Louis, who will say what he wants and take the piss and generally say whatever comes to mind without a filter. But Nick’s more drawn to this serious side of Louis, the side who can balance his sharp tongue with responsibility, who can be a father figure and keep up with Nick’s banter. It’s like he’s never thought both sides of Louis could exist in one body, like there even was this other side to Louis.

That’s how he finds himself sending a text message to Louis just three days later.

_I owe you one. Dinner at mine tom night?_

Understandably so, Louis doesn’t answer right away. He’s got a daughter, after all, and he’s likely got plenty of stuff to do anyway, still being famous and all that. Nick doesn’t think twice about it.  
It’s after he’s done a round of shopping at Tescos in hopes that Louis will say yes that he hears his phone ding with a reply. Nick pauses his unloading of the groceries in his kitchen to pull it from his pocket.

_soz, haven’t got a sitter_

Nick raises an eyebrow because he’d thought that Louis and Evie were a package deal, but he’s misunderstood or something. What sort of invitation did Louis think it was -- a date? He’s already got the high chair out, in hopes.

God, what is happening to him?

_She’s the one the invitation was meant for. You’re just the guardian._

Louis sends back a quick reply, and Nick snorts because he feels like he’s got that clever side of Louis showing again. He’d call it the fun side, but kids are fun, too. Especially Evie.

_she’s a bit young even by your standards grimmy_

But then like he’s putting on a show of manners for her, even though Evie has no idea what’s going on, he sends another message quickly, in addition.

_we’ll be there._

And Nick’s rather pleased with himself, to be honest. He’d thought Louis would put up more of a fight about it. Being a dad has made him grow up, and Nick’s starting to think that he likes it.

Louis and Evie are late, just as Nick predicted, which is why he’d told them that dinner was to be served at six. He’s really not going to be prepared to serve until seven – which happens to be a full five minutes after Louis and Evie arrive.

“You’re late,” Nick comments.

Louis looks around at the set table, the potatoes half-mashed in a bowl on the counter, and sees the roast still warming in the oven. “Looks like you knew I would be,” Louis replies. “Little Eves here had a bit of a meltdown, so we were delayed.”

Nick’s usually rather annoyed with Louis when he’s late, because it was a terrible habit of his all throughout the X-Factor filming, but when he’s late because of Evie it changes. Nick can’t be mad because he knows children are unpredictable. He knows Louis is doing the best he can with her, all on his own.

“You’re getting predictable, love,” Nick teases. He looks at Evie who’s tucked against Louis’s chest, gazing around with big, wide eyes. “Are we all better now, sweetheart?”

Evie curls her little fist in Louis’s nice and rather expensive looking cream jumper, but doesn’t edge away from Nick. “She’ll be fine,” Louis reassures them both. “Just didn’t want to wear shoes.”

“Can’t imagine where she gets that from,” Nick teases, thinking back to those few days filming the show when Louis insisted on sitting barefooted at his spot at the table.

Louis looks fond in spite of himself.

“There’s just a few minutes left on the roast and I was finishing up the mash when you arrived,” Nick says. “I’ve got a high chair by the table, I’ll grab her a piece of bread to tide her over until we’re ready.” He disappears into the kitchen without so much as a backwards glance.

Nick completely misses the shocked look on Louis’s face.

He settles Evie into the high chair as Nick slices off a piece of fresh baguette from the market. When he brings it out to her, Louis is just finishing with the fastening of her bib around her neck. “Here you go, sweetums,” he hums, putting the bread on the tray. “The rest will be out soon, I promise.”

Evie bites into the bread eagerly, and Louis watches her for a moment before he decides he can walk into the kitchen. Nick had the high chair positioned so Evie was facing it, so she could see Nick and perhaps Louis, if he deigned to converse with him. Apparently, he would. “You’ve really done up well, haven’t you?” Louis asks, looking around at the various pots and pans.

“I’m not _totally_ inept in the kitchen,” Nick replies. “Made some mash for Evie, by the way. I wasn’t sure what she preferred.”

“Mash is fine,” Louis agrees. Nick’s grateful he doesn’t mock.

He pulls the roast out of the oven and it looks plain, but smells amazing. “There’s wine in the fridge,” Nick says, waving his knife in that general direction. “D’you mind pouring us some while I serve up?”

Louis is strangely complacent as he pulls out a bottle of cabernet from the fridge and Nick hands him a corkscrew in beat with his movements – like being in the kitchen and putting the finishing touches on a meal are an intricate dance where they both know the moves. They work together. It’s nice.

He tries to hide his struggle, getting the cork out, and Nick lets him have this one because to be fair, he struggled to cut the roast into pieces that didn’t look like it was sent crookedly through a paper shredder.

Louis carries the two glasses of wine to the table, replaces the cork on the bottle, and then digs through the diaper bag for Evie’s sippy cup. He helps himself to Nick’s fridge and finds a bit of Ribena left to give her. “Haven’t you got any milk?”

“Lactose intolerant, remember?” Nick replies.

“Like I remember every detail about you,” Louis says with a laugh.

Nick shoots him a look over his shoulder and turns back to their plates. The two larger ones look ready to go – it’s the little plastic ware meant for Evie that he’s working on now. Nick doesn’t often like to let his guard down around Louis but he doesn’t want to fuck up when it comes to Evie, so he tosses his pride aside to ask, “Are these pieces small enough for her?”

He steps to the side, showing Louis the small chopped-up pieces of roast he’s put on her plate, along with quartered carrot slices and a neat pile of mash. “Should do, yeah,” Louis nods.

And huh, Nick thinks. Louis could have mocked him for that. But he didn’t.

Louis’s expression is unreadable as Nick picks up the plate to bring to Evie. All he does is watch Nick closely and carry the plates for the two of them, which admittedly smell quite good. “Here you go, love,” Nick says as he sets the plate down on her tray.

“She’s going to make a terrible mess of that,” Louis warns.

“Let her,” Nick replies easily. “She’s a kid. If she can’t play with her food now, then when can she?”

He steps away to let Louis have the spot at the head of the table, Evie on one side and Nick on the other. Louis stares at his plate for a moment, at the nice dishes and the actual centerpiece on the table, and the way Nick was so easily able to add Evie into the equation.

Nick waits for a moment, his glass of wine in hand, as he lets Louis get out of his head. It takes a moment, and Evie’s already a mess by the time he does, but eventually Louis picks up his wine glass and holds it to Nick’s. “Cheers,” he says.

“Cheers,” Nick smiles.

It feels so normal, sitting there at the dinner table with Louis and Evie, and Nick knows he should be panicking. He _wants_ to be panicking because this is fucking huge. This is a date, and there’s a child involved, and it’s more than Nick can actually rationally handle.

A big sip of wine pushes the panic away, and as he digs into this meal he’d tried to make to impress Louis, he finds that it’s not actually half bad. In fact, it’s rather good.

Even Louis says so, in his own way.

“That wasn’t bad,” Louis says as he’s fighting a losing battle, taking a washcloth to Evie’s face. “Probably top ten roast, top five mash. Carrots, though – _eugh_.”

“You just hate vegetables,” Nick says haughtily. “And you ate them, so.”

“I have to set a good example for my girl, haven’t I?” he coos, more to Evie than to Nick. He’s trying to get her to cooperate, to sit still while he wipes the mash out of her eyebrows and her hair and her ears. She’s truly a mess. “You really enjoyed the mash, didn’t you, love?” Evie squirms in her seat and makes a sound of protest. “I know, sweetheart, I know. This is your least favorite part of eating.” Louis sounds like he thinks he’s alone, so Nick lets him be. He stands in the kitchen, putting away leftovers and setting dishes in the dishwasher as Louis keeps talking to his daughter like Nick isn’t even there. “Lucky for you I brought a change of clothes,” he says. “You’ll probably still pick it out of your ears though, won’t you? Make a big mess of your sleeper. Little bugger.”

Nick wanders back to the doorway to gather up the wine glasses, the last remnants of dinner scattered on the table. “You can wash her, if you want,” he offers. “The bathroom’s down the hall. There should be some kid shampoo under the sink.”

Louis turns and looks up, confused. “Why on earth would you have that? Adult shampoo too strong for your delicate hair?” he says, adding the jest at the end.

Nick doesn’t bite.

“I do have god children, you know. It explains the high chair. And the cot. And the toys. And the spare dummies and blankets and what have you that I’ve got lying around this place. You know, the other baby stuff you _haven’t_ questioned,” Nick says simply. He pauses a beat. “Wash her up, it’s alright. I knew what I was getting us into when I made the mash.”

Louis opens his mouth like he wants the verbal sparring to continue, but Nick can see the beginnings of bags under Louis’s eyes, the exhaustion that has slowly set in during the weeks since he’s gotten Evie, and he doesn’t fight it. He just stands, picks up Evie from the chair, grabs the nappy bag, and retreats down the hallway.

Nick takes that opportunity to clean up Evie’s mess – the mash is quite literally everywhere, including the ceiling and the opposite end of the table from where they’d been eating. “Impressive,” Nick laughs to himself.

It’s around the time that he’s finished washing her mess of food off the walls that Louis and Evie make their way back to him, Evie wrapped up in a cosy striped sleeper. “A sleeper?” Nick asks, bemused. “You planning a sleepover?”

“Well you said you owed me one,” Louis retorts, but he looks nervous so he adds, “I figured it’d go late so it was easier to put them on her before she passes out than try to change her when we get home. You know how kids are. I didn’t want her to fuss.”

“Hey, relax,” Nick placates. “I don’t mind. You guys can stay the night if you want.”

Louis looks uneasily at Nick, and then back to Evie. “Let’s put a film on and see how she handles it. She doesn’t always sleep well in new places,” is what Louis settles on, and Nick will take it. He understands.

Evie is rather unhappy that Nick hasn’t got Frozen – Nick swore he never would because then he’d have to watch it endlessly, and he tells Louis as much – but manages to get Evie to agree to Toy Story. “She loves this one even if she acts like she doesn’t,” Louis says as Nick puts it in. “It’s all Liam ever watches with her.”

“Sounds like you’re the only one who indulges her obsession with Frozen,” Nick laughs.

Louis tucks Evie against his side as she curls up on the sofa with her blanket and dummy. She looks sleepy already – she probably won’t make it through half of the movie. “I can’t be the bad guy,” Louis admits, almost like he’s forgetting that he’s talking to Nick. “Not when I have to send her off to L.A. to have her time with Briana so much.”

And Nick’s never thought about it like that, but he gets it. He doesn’t want her to associate bad memories with him. He doesn’t want to lose her in a very public, very painful battle. Nick hopes it never comes to that.

Evie is fine at first, but within fifteen minutes she’s yawning and looks ready to sleep. “Gammy,” she mumbles, dummy still in her mouth. “Gammy.” She’s making grabby hands at Nick but he’s absolutely baffled.

“Your grandmum isn’t here, love,” Nick tells her. “Just me.”

“Gammy!” she says with more determination, though the word is still garbled.

“No, love. I’m _Nick_.”

Louis reaches down to take the dummy from her, and she seems to get that it means she should repeat it again, this time in clear English so they can understand. “Gammy!” she demands, sitting up to knot her little fist in Nick’s jumper.

“No, I’m not –“

Louis snorts – actually _snorts_ – in laughter. He’s practically doubled over whilst Nick sits there, baffled. Evie doesn’t seem to know what’s so funny, either, because she just turns back to her previous mission. “Gammy,” she says as she tugs his jumper again.

“I don’t –“

“She’s saying Grimmy,” Louis laughs. “Except it sounds like she’s calling you a grandma.”

Nick’s eyes narrow but when Evie smiles, nods, and says “Grammy!” then he gets it. Louis is right.

Evie Tomlinson’s way of saying his name sounds like _grandma_ , and there’s nothing he can do about it.

“You’re a right menace, you are,” he tells her, tickling her tummy playfully as he scoots closer, just as she wanted. “You get that from your dad too, don’t you?”

She’s smiling again, happy that Nick’s curled in closer to her and Louis, and now she can happily return to the film. Louis gives her back the dummy she’d had earlier, and she’s back to being sleepy, just like before her fit.

That’s when Nick realizes how close he and Louis are sitting. Granted, it’s because of Evie and not themselves, but it feels like something he’d do if he’d had just a little bit more wine, or something. With his arm draped along the back of the sofa, he looks up at Louis, really takes him in.

He gets a closer look at Louis when he’s this close – the definite bags under his eyes, but the same blue sparkle in them that he’s remembered since their first introduction years ago. Louis hasn’t gotten a new tattoo in ages, and in his cream coloured jumper and dark jeans Louis actually looks quite mature.

Being a parent looks good on Louis, Nick has decided. Bags under his eyes and all. And he’s not sure when the banter turned into something more, be it on the show or after the show or somewhere in between, but he doesn’t quite mind. Not when Louis is looking up at him, over his daughter who’s snuggled between them both, to stare at Nick in the dim lamp light of his living room.

Nick raises an eyebrow and Louis hesitates, mouth open like he wants to say something, and it’s amazing to Nick that they’re practically having a conversation without a single word. Louis shuts his mouth and shakes his head, but Nick doesn’t let him. He reaches out to stop him, turning so Louis’s focus is still on him.

This time, Louis looks scared. It alarms Nick and makes his chest tighten. He’d never meant for that.

“What’s on your brain, popstar?” Nick asks, hoping to sound casual.

Louis looks away.

“What are we doing, Nick?”

And _oh_ , things are serious now, because Louis’s gone and used his first name, which he never does. 

Nick is lost, and Louis looks ready to run. He doesn’t know what to say, just waits for Louis to elaborate. The air feels thick and tense and Nick doesn’t know how long it takes for Louis to speak, all he knows is that he doesn’t like it. He _hates_ it, honestly.

“Evie is already getting attached,” Louis explains softly. “I know you like to fuck about and have a good time. This… isn’t like you.” Louis looks around Nick’s home, towards the kitchen and dining room where they all ate together. “You don’t have to change to like, impress me or something.”

“I’d never be able to impress you,” Nick points out, and Louis nods like it’s something he hadn’t considered.

He still looks worried, though, and now he’s quiet, too. That’s Nick’s least favourite version of Louis: the quiet one.

“I’m not an idiot when it comes to kids, you know,” Nick points out, like it’s simple to talk about this stuff, about trying to be an adult when all he wants to do is pretend he’s still twenty-something and living the dream. “Or you, for that matter.” Louis scoffs at that.

“I don’t need compliments, Grimshaw,” Louis says firmly. “I need to know you’re not going to hurt us.”

And Nick thinks that’s the most honest and straightforward Louis has ever been with him – in a serious way, at least. Louis is never afraid to tell him how he feels in any other sense. This should make sense, but it feels off, like he’s intruding even though Louis has let him into his own thoughts.

“I’d never do that,” Nick insists. “You, maybe, but only like, with a poorly timed joke or summat. But Evie?” He looks down at her, at her soft blonde hair that smells like the soap in his bathroom now, at the way she’s curled up between them, slumped like there’s nowhere she’d rather be than between the two of them. He pets her hair gently to push it out of her face and sighs, resigning himself to the fate he’s just now realized. “This is only the second time we’ve had a night like this and your daughter’s got me wrapped around her bloody finger, Louis.”

Louis’s eyes flash; he’s not used to hearing Nick call him by his full name. He also looks a bit emotional, like maybe he’d expected Nick to just shove them out when he’d voiced his concerns. Nick can be snappy and harsh, but he’d never do that. Not to them.

“I mean it,” Nick insists. “I almost dashed out to buy that fucking Frozen movie, that’s how badly she’s done me in.”

Louis laughs and shakes his head. “Oh dear god, please no.”

“You should just lose that DVD for a while,” Nick suggests. “She’d be none the wiser.”

Louis snorts. “Tried it. D’you really think I wouldn’t think of that?” he mocks. “She tore the house to shreds looking for it. Grabbed everything within reach and tossed it about until I found her. Then she screamed and cried until I gave in.”

“Weak,” Nick teases, but he knows he’d do the same.

And honestly, he can’t blame Louis for wanting to make her happy all the time. Nick’s not even a father, but he gets that feeling, the one that makes you want to do good, to set a good example, and to put a smile on a kid’s face.

Louis looks down at his lap like he feels stupid for even worrying, for bringing this up when it’s clearly just a second evening together and nothing more. But then Nick shifts his arm to rest it around Louis’s shoulders and he says, “You’ve got to relax, Tommo. I haven’t seen you this wound up in a while.”

With a roll of his eyes, Louis says, “I’m a dad now. I’ve got to be careful.”

“Bollocks,” Nick replies simply. “You’re a dad but you’re still you. Stop being so fucking worried all the time. You never used to worry this much.”

“You say that like you’ve been keeping tabs on me,” Louis says, corners of his mouth turning up like he’s fighting a smile.

Nick full-on laughs. “Well it’s funny. I do remember seeing your name all over the papers once upon a time, popstar.” He pauses and gets serious. “You’ve worked really fucking hard. You’ve got a kid but it’s not how it once was. You can go out in public with one security guy and get away with it – even with Evie. So lighten up. This is only our first official date.”

Louis snorts again, and Nick kind of likes that derisive sort of response to what he says. He’s noticed it before, but now it’s just cute. Not that he’d admit to anything Louis Tomlinson does as being cute, because Louis would have his head, but he likes to keep it in his arsenal just in case.  
Louis is quiet, contemplating his next move. Nick feels a bit nervous for it.

“Why should I trust you?”

He knows he deserves that question, that they’ve got a long past that doesn’t exactly bode well for future success, but they were young and stupid. Nick thinks he’ll just chalk it up to that and call it good, but Louis looks serious. The last thing he wants to do is take the piss when Louis is being open with him.

“You’ve no reason to, I suppose,” Nick agrees. He leans in, his nose bumping Louis’s. “But other people do trust me with their kids, so that’s something, innit?”

Their lips brush but it’s not a full kiss, nothing proper or anything, and Louis’s breath catches as he closes his eyes and feels Nick so close to him. Nick can hardly hear what Louis says, his heart is pounding so loud in excitement. “It’s not much to go on, but suppose I’ll take it,” Louis hedges, and he’s got that fucking smirk on his lips that Nick finds both handsome and infuriating.

And right there, with little Evie nestled between them, fast asleep, they kiss. Their lips meet gently, and it’s nothing like Nick could have ever anticipated. Louis is needy and commanding, but he’s also letting Nick have some give, letting him lead. Nick’s got his arm around Louis’s shoulders and he’s trying to be gentle. He wants so badly to pull Louis closer but they’ve got Evie, so that won’t work.

He bites Louis’s lower lip and Louis shudders, he can feel it in the way his whole body moves under his touch. The kiss turns slow, Louis flitting his tongue over Nick’s upper lip before tasting him, sucking at his tongue. Nick loses his breath at that, lost in the moment. His mind completely whites out when Louis puts his hand on his thigh, and _fuck_ Nick thinks - since when did one simple touch send him to heaven like this?

He could probably keep going for hours, Louis’s lips moving against his until their lips are red and puffy and halfway to numb, but Evie stirs between them and fusses just a bit. Louis breaks away with an apologetic glance before he licks his lips and looks down at his daughter. “What’s the matter, love?” he asks softly.

She’s lost her dummy, is all, and he fetches it for her easily.

“I’ve got a cot set up in the spare room,” Nick offers. “Got a proper monitor set and everything.”  
For a moment Nick’s worried that Louis will say no, that they’ve got to be getting home, but thankfully he doesn’t. He nods and accepts it, and Nick holds Evie against him as Louis stands. Gently, he cradles her into his arms and Nick leads the way.

It’s so easy for them to fall right back into this domestic sort of rhythm, Nick grabbing an extra blanket to lay gently over Evie’s sleeping form in the cot. He switches on the monitor, turns off the lamp, and he and Louis tiptoe out into the hallway.

Louis’s rubbing at his eyes as Nick goes back down the hallway, and it’s not until he’s halfway to the kitchen that he realizes Louis isn’t following. “What’s the matter?” Nick asks, just like Louis had asked Evie not too long before.

“Just tired,” Louis mumbles. “Sorry.”

It’s probably the first apology Nick’s ever heard from Louis, but he doesn’t make a big thing of it. Louis is tired, so Nick leads him down the hall and into his bedroom. “Here you go, then,” he says, pulling open a drawer on his dresser. “Sleepwear is in there, pick whatever you want. I should have spare toothbrushes in the cabinet. I’ll be in soon, alright? I just want to make sure everything is switched off.

Louis looks so tired that Nick will be amazed if he’s still awake when he returns in a few short minutes. Being a parent must be unimaginably hard, Nick thinks. Louis must realize the same thing because he reaches out for Nick, grabbing him by his wrist before he leaves the room.  
“Thanks,” Louis mumbles, looking up at him.

“For what?” Nick wonders stupidly.

Louis smiles, his eyes droopy from tiredness but no duller for it, and he says, “Dunno, really. All of it?”

“You need to get some sleep,” Nick instructs with a fond smile. “You’re thanking me for being a decent human being to you and your daughter. You’ve officially gone insane.”

“Shut it,” Louis says, and playfully smacks Nick’s chest.

“Well that is what you meant, isn’t it?” Nick wonders.

Louis shrugs. He’s got the sleeve of his jumper wrapped around his hand as he rubs at his eye. “That and dinner, I suppose. And…”

“Don’t you dare thank me for a kiss,” Nick laughs. “You’re not that old, hard-up father yet, Tommo. I won’t let it happen.”

Louis rolls his eyes and mocks, “Protecting my honor. How noble of you.”

And it’s risky, but after what they did on the sofa Nick things he can get away with it: he leans down for a soft kiss, something quick and chaste but filled with meaning, and Louis tips his head up for it naturally, like they’ve been meant to kiss that way and many times more, even if they’ve been too daft to realize it until that moment. “Get changed and climb into bed, popstar. I’ll be back in just a mo.”

Louis nods and takes his time, hoping to fend off sleep for a few more moments so he can at least curl up properly in bed with Nick. It’s been so long since he’s even been cuddled, at least in the way he wants it, because cuddling his daughter definitely isn’t the same thing.

Nick foregoes cleaning, deciding it’s better to just switch off all the lights and lock the door instead. When he gets back to his room, Louis is just wandering out of the bathroom, changed and ready for bed. Nick does his do quickly, putting on some flannel pants and an old tee shirt before he skims over his teeth quickly with a toothbrush. He’s afraid if he does a full job of it, Louis will be asleep by the time he gets back.

Louis is in bed, but he’s not quite asleep yet. He seems to be in that half space between conscious and unconscious, too tired now to even speak. It’s endlessly endearing.

Nick switches on the baby monitor, which hums for a moment before settling in on the sounds of Evie’s light snores, and he smiles. Just like her father in that way too, then.

They roll towards each other in the centre of the bed and it’s nothing particularly romantic, nothing to make a great deal out of, but Louis slots against Nick rather nicely and Louis is asleep before Nick’s even fully settled.

With a ridiculously gross fond smile on his face that he’ll vehemently deny if anyone tries to accuse him of it, Nick kisses the top of Louis’s head and holds him close. And with Louis so close and warm and cozy, it’s easy for Nick to slip into it – the sleep, and something more.


End file.
